Overhead carriage



ATTORNEYS Sept 4, 1956 c. A. HARLAN OVERHEAD CARRIAGE Filed Dec.

United tates Patent VERHAD CARRIAGE Campheli Alien Harlan, Birmingham, Mich.

Application December 15, 1952, Serial No. 326,029

Claims. (Cl. 10S-154) The present invention relates to an overhead carriage.

In construction work a great deal of overhead assembly is required at a stage of the construction when the steel frame work is in place and a network of intersecting overhead beams is provided. Prior to the present invention a large part of this construction assembly was taken care of by moving movable towers around, which required the workman to climb up and down the tower and to carry the material being assembled with him. In accordance with the present invention a carriage is provided which may be movable along an overhead beam and the carriage is constructed and arranged to permit it to pass intersecting beams without interference.

It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a carriage designed for movement along an overhead beam and past intersecting beams.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a carriage of the type referred to, provideed with three pairs of wheels or supporting rollers, the rollers of each pair being axially aligned and spaced apart so as to permit the rollers to engage and roll along the horizontal flange of a beam.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a carriage of the type described in which the wheels are carried by arms which are mounted for outward rocking movement to permit one pair of wheels to be moved outwardly to clear an intersecting beam as the carriage is moved along, this lirst set of wheels being moved inwardly to engage the flange of the supporting beam past the intersecting beam, the operation being carried out successively for the remaining pairs of wheels.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a carriage of the type described in which the arms supporting the wheels of the end pairs are provided with abumients adapted to underlie the supporting flange when the wheel is in flange engaging position to limit rocking movement of the carriage about the center pair of wheels when one of the pairs of wheels is disengaged.

Other objects and features of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds, especially when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is an end elevation of the improved carriage, shown in position on a supporting beam.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the carriage shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged view of a wheel and wheel supporting arm shown in retracted position.

rhe carriage comprises an elongated support 10 herein illustrated as comprising angle irons 12 welded or otherwise secured to an elongated strip 14 and end plates 16. Depending from the end plates 16 are a pair of frame members 18 shown herein as angle irons. The frame members 18 are pivoted to the end plates 16 by pivot pins 20. At their lower ends the frame members 18 are secured to angle irons 22 which provide a support for a seat or platform 24 which may if desired be of plywood. In-

termediate the upper and lower ends of the frame mem- 2,761,396 Patented Sept. 4, 1956 bers 18 are secured angle irons 26, and angle irons 28 are secured to extend between opposite ends of the angle irons 26. Thus, angle irons 26 and 28 form a protective enclosure for a workman seated on the seat 24.

Carried by the elongated rigid support 10 are a plurality of pairs of brackets 30 which may be bolted to the vertical flanges or" the angle irons 12 as illustrated at 32 in Figure 3. The brackets 30 include apertured ears 34 to which are pivoted wheel supporting arms 36, the pivot means being iliustrated at 38. The arms 36 are provided with track engaging wheels or rollers 40, these wheels including tlanges 42 to cooperate with the bottom horizontal ange 44 of an I-beam indicated generally at 46. Also carried by each of the brackets 30 is an actuating arm or lever 48, the lever 48 being pivoted to the bracket as indicated at 50. Intermediate the lever 48 and the arm 36 is a short link 52 pivoted to the lever as indicated at 54 and pivoted to the arm 36 as indicated at 56. In Figure 3 the lever 48 is shown as swung to the depending position which has moved the arm 36 and roller 40 outwardly to a position in which it clears the supporting beam and in which position it of course also clears a second beam 57 which intersects the beam illustrated at 46.

Means are provided to lock the arm and associated roller in the operative position and this means comprises a pin 58 adapted to pass through openings 60 and 62 in the lever 48 and link 52 respectively, when the link and lever are aligned as illustrated in Figure l. Preferably, the pin 58 is carried by a chain 64.

Each arm 36 of the outer pairs of arms is provided with an abutment 66 adapted to underlie the ange 44 of the I-beam 46. This is to prevent or limit rocking movement of the elongated support 18 when one pair of rollers 40 is in released position, as might otherwise occur if the workman positions himself adjacent one side of the seat 24 after the supporting rollers at that side of the frame have been released.

With the above detailed construction it is possible for a workman to carry a supply of devices to be assembled in an overhead position adjacent the ceiling or other overhead construction, and to propel himself along a continuous beam even though the beam may be intersected throughout its length by a plurality of crossing beams.

It is found that by employing this apparatus a single workman can perform a specifically greatly increased amount of installation with a corresponding reduction in cost per unit of installation. The foregoing described apparatus is simple to construct and easy to operate.

The drawings and the foregoing specication constitute a description of the improved overhead carriage in such a full, clear, concise and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, the scope of which is indicated by the appended claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. An overhead carriage for supporting a platform for use in making ceiling installations where lixed structural steel framework exists and includes first aligned beams provided with horizontal flanges constituting a continuous trackway and other beams intersecting said first beams and forming obstructions on the trackway: said carriage comprising an elongated rigid frame, a platform carried by said frame and adapted to be occupied by a workman, at least three pairs of rollers located above said frame, two of said pairs of rollers being disposed adjacent the ends of said frame and another pair of rollers being disposed intermediate the ends. of said frame to provide support for said frame against tipping when a pair of rollers at the end of the frame is disengaged from the track- Way, the rollers of each pair being spaced apart laterally to roll on the horizontal llanges of the rst beams of the framework, and means on said frame supporting each of said pairs of rollers for independent outward movement into a clearance position with respect to intersecting beams to provide for movement of said carriage along said first beams by sequential release and rc1-engagement of said pairs of rollers.

2. A carriage as dened in claim 1 in which the means supporting said rollers comprises arms on which said rollers are mounted, and means connecting the arms for each pair of rollers to said frame for swinging movement toward and away from each other, and an operating lever carried by said frame and operatively connected to each of said arms and accessible to an occupant of the platform for actuating each of said arms.

3. A carriage as defined in claim 2 which includes an abutment on each of the arms supporting the end pairs of rollers positioned to underlie the iiange of the supporting beam to prevent substantial swinging movement of said carriage when one pair of end rollers is moved to outwardly displaced position.

4. A carriage movable along the bottom iiange of an overhead beam and capable of movementA past intersecting beams, comprising an elongated rigid frame, a platform carried by said frame and adapted to be occupied by a workman, upwardly extending pairs of arms at both ends and intermediate the ends of said frame, flange engaging rollers on the upper ends of said arms, pivot mountings for said arms on said frame providing for movement of the arms of each pair laterally outwardly from the beam independently of the arms of the other pairs, operating means carried by said frame and operatively connected to the arms of each of said pairs and accessible to an occupant of said platform for selectively swinging the arms of each of said pairs outwardly to a clearance position with respect to an intersecting beam, the aforesaid pairs of arms including the intermediate pair of arms and flange engaging rollers being in position to support the elongated frame against rocking movement about a horizontal axis extending transversely to the length of the carriage when one of the pairs of arms at either end of said carriage is moved to clearance position with respect to an intersecting beam.

5. A carriage as defined in claim 4 in which each of the arms of the pairs at the ends of said elongated frame is provided with a rigid projection positioned to underlie the overhead beam to limit substantial swinging of said frame about said horizontal transverse axis when the pair of arms and rollers carried thereby at the opposite end of said frame is moved to clearance position.

6. An overhead carriage for supporting a platform for use in making overhead installations where xed structural steel framework exists and includes first aligned beams provided with horizontal franges constituting a trackway and other beams intersecitng said first beams and forming obstructions on the trackway; said carriage comprising an elongated rigid frame, a platform carried by said frame and adapted to be occupied by a workman, roller support means at each end of and intermediate the ends of said frame connected thereto and adapted to extend upwardly from said frame, said roller support means including rollers movable over the trackway and operable to suspend said frame from said iirst beams, a movable connection between each of said roller support means and said frame providing for movement of each roller support means to a position in which it clears the aforementioned other intersecting beams to provide for movement of said carriage past an obstruction by sequentially moving each roller support means to clearance position and re-engaging them beyond the obstruction, said roller support means including the intermediate roller support means being in position to cooperate with the roller support means at either end of said frame to support said frame in substantial balance against tipping when the roller support means at the opposite end of said frame is moved to clearance position.

7. A carriage as dened in claim 6 including abutment members associated with the rollers at the ends of said frame and disposed beneath the flange on which the associated roller is supported to prevent substantial tipping of said frame while one of the end roller support means is moved to clearance position.

8. A carriage as defined in claim 6 which includes operating means carried by said frame and operatively connected to each of ysaid roller support means and accessible to an occupant of said platform for selectively moving each of said roller support means to and from clearance position while said trolley is moved past an intersecting beam.

9. A carriage movable along the bottom ange of an overhead beam and capable of movement past intersecting beams, comprising an elongated rigid frame, a platform carried by said frame and adapted to be occupied by a workman, brackets fixed to said frame at opposite sides thereof adjacent both ends thereof and intermediate said ends, arms pivoted to said brackets, rollers carried by said arms and adapted when said arms are in a predetermined position relative to said frame to roll on said bottom flange so as to suspend said frame from said beam, means accessible to an occupant of said platform for selectively moving said arms and rollers carried thereby outwardly to a clearance position relative to said bottom ange, including levers pivoted to said brackets, and links pivoted to said levers and to said arms intermediate their ends, and means for locking said arms in the predetermined position aforesaid to maintain said rollers in rolling engagement with said bottom ange.

10. A carriage movable along the bottom flange of an overhead beam and capable of movement past intersecting beams, comprising an elongated rigid frame, a platform carried by said frame and adapted to be occupied by a workman, brackets Xed to said frame at opposite sides thereof adjacent both ends thereof and intermediate said ends, arms pivoted to said brackets, rollers carried by said arms and adapted when said arms are in a predetermined position relative to said frame to roll on said bottom ange so as to suspend said frame from said beam, means accessible to an occupant of said platform for selectively moving said arms and rollers carried thereby outwardly to a clearance position relative to said bottom ange, including levers pivoted to said brackets, and links pivoted to said levers and to said arms intermediate their ends, said levers and links respectively having openings adapted to register with each other when said arms are in the predetermined position aforesaid, and means for locking said arms in said predetermined position to maintain said rollers in rolling engagement with said bottom flange, including pins engageable with the openings aforesaid when in registration with each other.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 574,371 Ault lan. 5, 1897 911,221 Ellsworth Feb. 2, 1909 1,005,452 Moore Oct. 10, 1911 1,159,388 Jacobs Nov. 9, 1915 1,574,765 Thompson et al Mar. 2, 1926 1,734,175 McCabe Nov. 5, 1929 2,212,695 Nash Aug. 27, 1940 2,269,630 Marinello Jan. 13, 1942 2,439,986 Rennie Apr. 20, 1948 2,645,187 Guadagna July 14, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 494,451 Germany Mar. 22, 1930 15,681 Great Britain July 4, 1912 

